Hard to be a God - Diary #3 @ RPGVault

by Magerette, 2007-11-15 20:44:56

The Vault has posted their next installment of developer diaries for Burut's and Akella's rpg, Hard to be a God, based on the The Noon series of alternative future sc-fi novels created by the Russian brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. Here's a quick summary of the storyline:

Hard to be a God is Burut's RPG derived from and named after the fourth Noon Universe novel. Rather than attempting to re-tell the tale, it is an extension that takes place two years later. The main character, a graduate of a secret service academy, is given a mission that takes him to Arkanar, an independent, underdeveloped kingdom torn apart by anarchy. Trained in both combat and diplomacy, he is more than a match for anyone there. However, this does not mean his task will be easy or predictable. Indeed, he will find himself caught up in matters of far greater magnitude than he would ever have imagined.

Among other things Vladimir Kovner, Project Manager for the game, talks about horses and items:

Now, I'd like to talk a bit about horses. They play a special role in Hard to be a God. The hero may purchase one at any time and use it to travel across zones. It's also possible to fight while mounted, against both other riders and adversaries on foot. This is a great help in combat since horses are hardy, with much more health than the player character and also greater resistant to damage...

...Switching to another element of our game, items, I should note that in addition to regular ones like clothes, weapons and potions, there are also various documents and books, Earth (sci-fi) weapons and medical substances. Books aren't used in the play; rather, they aim to introduce the player to the world, including its organization, traditions, inhabitants and so on.

The equipment used by the earthlings include, among other things, super-light swords, and clothes that enhance your role-playing characteristics. As for medical substances, their purpose is to equip the main character with special abilities... regeneration, agility, great strength, and so on. As a rule, these benefits only last for certain lengths of time. Such items are rare in the game, so when you do find them, you'll need to use them very carefully.